Depth-Laden Field Lines Up for First Lady Stakes

The female turf division has been endlessly entertaining to witness and brutally unforgiving to compete within. 

No matter the weekend or track, no drop-off in the quality of entries seems to exist. Even if the pro-tem leaders choose to momentarily cool their heels, or opt for a different venue, another pack of accomplished turf ladies is waiting along every graded avenue.

Count the $400,000 First Lady Stakes (G1T) at Keeneland Oct. 7 as the latest example. There is no Lady Eli to contend with, no Miss Temple City or Dacita to try and fend off. Still, what remains is a seven-horse field ripe with distaffers who have already beaten some of the perceived best.

Anchored by the presence of the Kiaran McLaughlin-trained grade 1 winner Dickinson, the one-mile First Lady Stakes lacks for little in terms of quality. Though Dickinson prevailed over the course this April when she bested Lady Eli in the Coolmore Jenny Wiley Stakes (G1T), the daughter of Medaglia d'Oro  has dropped her last three starts—a byproduct of being in one of racing's toughest divisions.

"When you look at all the major preps, they are all coming up pretty salty," said Arnaud Delacour, trainer of multiple graded stakes winner Hawksmoor, who is seeking her first grade 1 win in the First Lady. "There are no easy grade 1s. It's a tough division so we just have to pick a spot."

Since finishing third in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes Presented by Lane's End (G1T) last October in her North American debut, Hawksmoor has defeated some elite challengers while racking up a pair of graded scores. 

In her seasonal debut, the 4-year-old daughter of Azamour (IRE) toppled eventual Beverly D. Stakes (G1T) winner Dacita by a head in the May 13 Beaugay Stakes (G3T) at Belmont Park. The gate-to-wire ability she showed that day was too good again in the June 9 New York Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G2T) as she ran off to a one-length win over a field that again included Dacita along with that one's fellow grade 1-winning stablemate Sea Calisi.

A setback hit in Hawksmoor's most recent start, when she faded to seventh in the Aug. 12 Beverly D. Stakes, but Delacour said the filly missed training time heading into that outing due to illness.

"We had an episode in the middle of the summer where she was sick, so I don't think we came to the race in Arlington in the best way possible," Delacour said. "I wish I would have seen her perform better, to be honest, but it is what it is. She's been competing with that kind of filly all year, and I hope she can come back to her best form. She seems to have bounced back well and I'm happy with her."

After starting her career on dirt, Dickinson emerged as a legitimate player in the turf ranks with three straight graded stakes wins the first half of the year—a streak that culminated with her head victory in the Jenny Wiley. Her two most recent defeats have come at the hands of Lady Eli. Dickinson showed versatility last time out when she abandoned her usual stalking style and set the pace in the Woodford Reserve Ballston Spa Stakes (G2T) at Saratoga Race Course, before settling for place honors.

"They went the first half in :48 and four and the second half in :45 flat; that's crazy," McLaughlin said of Dickinson's Ballston Spa effort. "That hurt us, but she ran great."

A group 1 winner in her native Argentina, Dona Bruja hasn't done much wrong in her three U.S.-based starts for trainer Ignacio Correas IV. The 5-year-old mare notched back-to-back wins in the Old Forester Mint Julep Handicap (G3T) and Modesty Handicap (G3T) before falling a half-length short of victory in the Beverly D.

Entries: First Lady S. (G1T)

Keeneland, Saturday, October 07, 2017, Race 7

• Grade IT
• 1m
• Turf
• $400,000
• 3 yo's & up Fillies and Mares
• 4:35 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1One Liz (IL)	Jose Valdivia, Jr.	124	Wayne M. Catalano	20/1
2	2Delectation (GB)	Eduardo Pedroza	121	Andreas Wohler	15/1
3	3Dona Bruja (ARG)	Declan Cannon	124	Ignacio Correas, IV	5/2
4	4Roca Rojo (IRE)	Javier Castellano	124	Chad C. Brown	2/1
5	5Zipessa (KY)	Joe Bravo	124	Michael Stidham	10/1
6	6Dickinson (KY)	Paco Lopez	124	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	5/2
7	7Hawksmoor (IRE)	Julien R. Leparoux	124	Arnaud Delacour	4/1